These crab cakes and that shake!

What is it about men and sports that drives them out of their caves and makes them travel from one "city" to another just to be able to watch a live telecast of their favorite game? It's crazy!! 

M called me out of the  blue to "invite" me to lunch at Italianni's The Fort because his favorite game was being telecast live at that branch. I had lunch when he called so the invitation was late, but the thought of him rushing there to watch that game was just too much for me to resist. I needed to get some baking ingredients at the grocery anyways. 

I arrived after the game was over, and he was doing some work, and using the available wifi. I ordered a special on the menu-the Crab Cakes Capri. I thought they would be a light and filling supplement to my leftover pizza lunch :D Seafood is summer food! These were really good!

Crab Cakes Capri (P175)

Pure white, flaky, juicy real crab meat. Yum.  Good deal!

There were 6 pieces to this order. M had enough of the pasta that he ordered so he didn't get any of this. I was so full after. I think 2-3 people should share this dish. 2 would be perfect, 3's fine.

   

Strawberry Shake 

It was so hot outside... er, if you live in Metro Manila, I think you know how hot this summer is. 

I then ordered a truly refreshing Strawberry Shake that got me right in the mood to explore The Fort. It was full of fresh strawberries, with a hint of mint. I'm not so sure but I think this beverage cost as much as the Crab Cakes. Hehe.

It's so good that I would like to thank the Lord for the creation of the blender :D

I've had the Peach Mango from Shiok and this awesome Strawberry Shake 
from Italianni's to make this summer refreshing.

What's your summer drink this year?:)

Another good deal

It was luck again when I chanced upon another good deal in Deal Grocer. A month before M's birthday, I found deal on the 7 Corners Lunch Buffet for P995+ net at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Last year, we got a deal at Sofitel Plaza.

We've always wanted to try the buffet here because it was one of the pioneering popular hotel lunch buffets in the metro.This year was our chance. I read some bad reviews of the place, but we had to see for ourselves. I booked a slot on the weekend right after M's birthday.

The buffet hall isn't as huge as the other hotels in the metro. In fact it was quite small. The buffet was lined up on one side of the hall, cut up in 7 corners.

Of course we attacked the seafood first. (We always do that. :D) They had lobsters, prawns, and hidden at the back , some oysters-which we failed to see until we had to leave. Boo!

This is the cutest pile of wasabi that I have ever seen.

It's almost a shame to blend it with the soy sauce. But of course, I did!:D

Chawan Mushi

They had Chawan Mushi! It's a savory egg flan, that's almost like soup. 

This version was a bit too firm. I think it was overcooked.

The seafood loot. 

We also had some steak, which I wasn't able to take a photo of because we wolfed it down right away.

The steak was a bit thin, but you can always go back for more if you want. 

It was cooked just the way I wanted it- medium well. Happy :)

This is my dessert loot. There was ice cream, creme brulee, a chocolate fountain (which wasn't doing so great that day), and a lot of cakes. I had two plates of cake, but this was my favorite batch- Ube cake, Chocolate mousse, Caramel Mousse. Good cakes!:)

They serve coffee and tea on the house, so make sure you avail of that when you try it there. :)

I will admit that we've tasted better and bigger buffets. 

It is a delight though to know they have a good dessert corner :) 

Have a happy weekend ahead!

A Little Exotic

I've always been curious of the Banana Leaf and Curry, but I was afraid the food would be a little too spicy for me. I get these weird little notions sometimes. Anyways, we finally got to try it when Mark had to got the Manila area to meet a client. Since it was too late to go home and cook dinner, we decided to eat inside the Robinson's Place Mall, and found the Banana Leaf and Curry right near the escalator leading to one of the parking areas.

I was still too apprehensive to try anything big. Mark had a curry meal (although I wasn't able to take a photo of it, dang!), and I ordered the Lemongrass Tea and had some of the appetizer- Cheese Balls.

Nope, I didn't enjoy this. It was to exotic for me. Hehe

These balls were surprisingly yummy.
Cheesy and full to the bite. I wanted to order more,
but it was too expensive for its size.

A Twist on the Classic Filipino Taste

C2 Classic Cuisine is conveniently located right in the heart of the new Pedro Gil Wing of Robinson's Place Manila. They serve mainly Filipino dishes with a modern twist, and a few other Asian fusion cuisine.

My Papa likes the Arroz Caldo ( P120) a hefty serving of this garlic heavy, chicken and rice porridge. It's super comfort food!

Arroz Caldo

Arroz Caldo

Feeling a little adventurous... I tried the Veggie Tempeh Wrap (P140 ). It was spicy! I liked it but it was a little too spicy for me.

Veggie Tempeh Wrap

Milk dip

Veggie Tempeh Wrap-heavy with onions and,
ginger and vermicelli

Mark ordered the Crispy Pata (P475 ). It was well made. Tasty and crispy! I think though it should have been ordered by at least four people (there were only three of us at that time).



For dessert, we ordered The Bibingka Souffle (P145 ). I was highly intrigued by it. It was yummy at first bite... but it was too creamy for me. This one's heavy on the quezo de bola cheese, eggs and milk.

Bibingka Souffle

Bibingka Souffle

After breaking it..

Service was okay. We really like it here!

Our Fiesta at Ilustrado

Three Kagay-anons in Manila missing Cagayan de Oro (that's me, my husband and our friend Eric ), dined together to celebrate the town fiesta. We decided to go to Ilustrado Restaurant, located at the Intramuros last Friday night. We were actually enticed to try the place, because of Eric's high recommendation of the Sampaguita Ice Cream.

I was initially hesistant of the place, because I read somewhere that the place preferred reservations, and I figured a place like that would be too expensive. In fact, when Queen Sophia of Spain visited the Philippines, she was tendered a dinner there by the former President Fidel Ramos and his wife.

Since there were three of us, we figured the damage (on our wallets) wouldn't be as bad. So off we went to the walled city.

The restaurant is located along Calle Real de Palacio. There's a vertical sign on the left side of the street with the name Ilustrado in red and black. A little path will lead you to the restaurant. The place echoes the whole of Intramuros- of antique Spanish furniture and design. I love the smell of old wood and old houses. There are tables and chairs for those who want to eat al fresco. We went inside the main dining room. The place looks old and rich. I dare say though, it wouldn't hurt to renovate some things in the dining room.

When we went in, we were surprised there was nobody else dining there at 8 in the evening. It felt eerie. It didn't help either that the waiter wasn't so smiling. Ilustrado, eh? A waitress came in next to take our order and she wasn't so nice either. Maybe we just had gotten used to eating in nice places with smiling waitresses.

They served us bread ( 2 pieces each person). One was a slice of a baguette and the other a soft bread roll with raisins. Good bread. The liver pate was alright.

Bread

Liver Pate and Butter

The boys ordered the appetizer- Calf's Brain Meuniere . It was lightly fried, and the soft brain can still be tasted in the middle. It was done medium well, actually. I would have preferred it a little more cooked, as the exterior was really flavorful with the lemon butter and caper sauce. The boys liked the soft, juicy interiors though, Hehe.

Calf's Brain

Cross section of the Calf's Brain

For the main course, we ordered the Paella Ilustrado(P600+) . I think it was a signature dish, and is meant for sharing. I think it was alright. I've tasted better a better Paella. Mention must be made also of the crab claws. It was observed that the crab meat was dry and not fresh, and we had to have it cracked open in the kitchen, upon request.

Paella Ilustrado

Paella Ilustrado

Now, for the piece de resistance... the Sampaguita Ice Cream (P90) . It was a small scoop in a margarita glass, but it was all one ever needed. Such a lovely, lovely ice cream. It tasted strongly of sampaguitas. My mind was floating while eating it. It's the perfect dessert for a date! If one was going to propose to a girl... I think you'd get a yes if you make her have this dessert first before you pop the question! Hehe

Sampaguita Ice Cream

Sampaguita Ice Cream

For all that it's worth, the experience sucked because of the service. There was a careless manner in the way they handled us. Hmmmm. Even when they had to dish out the appetizer plates and replace them with dinner plates, there was seriously a careless manner about them. Please allow me to be honest, it was supposed to be a fine dining experience. I guess they are used to Ilustrados (a.k.a. foreigners or bigger "a"'s) as customers, who came in a little after the appetizers. Or maybe it was just another bad day. Lady luck...where are you?


Do go for the Sampaguita Ice Cream. It's worth the wait.


Another dessert saves the evening!!

My Kind of Icing

There it is again. That familiar, fluffy, pristine white icing . . . gloriously embracing a lucky cake.Hehe.

We dropped by Becky's Kitchen while we were on our way to Pasay City. Inching our way through yet another classic Becky's crowd, we ordered two pieces of Walnut Fudge Brownies, a slice of a Blueberry Cheesecake for Mark, and the Swiss Chocolate Cake (P45/slice) for me. As you can see, I have taken only one picture of an EATEN piece of the loot. I can't believe we were that impatient. Hmp. This is my punishment for being impatient. We had devoured the cheesecake, a light and fluffy variety, which Mark absolutely loved. I liked it too, but I really prefer dense cheesecakes... just like the ones served at Vienna Kaffeehaus.

But back to the lovely icing...i think it served its purpose well on this cake. The cake had crumbly blocks of toffee in between layers of a mocha chiffon cake, and the icing served to seal and provide the moistness. Yummy. I really think the icing is the main star in this cake.

Swiss Chocolate Cake

Tokyo Cafe

Tokyo Cafe at the Mall of Asia is a modern Japanese restaurant. Their cuisine is a fusion of Japanese and Western dishes. There's a lot of sandwiches, pastas, and soups. The Japanese twist is on the ingredients like Crabsticks, Shrimps and the like. They serve nice blended coffee mixes too :)

Tokyo Hamburg (P149)

Hamburg Steak (P193)- reminiscent of a popular food chain's Burger Steak.
The Tempura on the side was good though.

Shrimp Bisque (P73)
Great soup!

I forgot the name of the shake. It was okay.

I remember their Mango Crepe was very good. It's a neat place to go to at the MOA.